The kringle — Wisconsin’s official state pastry — is the greatest Danish-American pasty creation. More than a flaky, fruit-filled wreath, it’s a symbol of the largest Danish community outside of Denmark. It’s grander than a cheese Danish and more festive than a tin of butter cookies. Individually, a kringle is just the right size to feed an office meeting or a large, hungry family. While you’re on the road, one can last for several days of snacking.
The O & H Bakery is run by the Olesen family, who are said to have invented the kringle in 1949. The family motto is that there is “nothing quite a comforting as a slice of delicious kringle and a cup of hot coffee.” The O&H empire has grown to include a few roadside stands and mall kiosks across Southern Wisconsin, where border-crossing Chicago food lovers, curious tourists, and savvy commuters get their unnecessary daily allowance of butter and sugar.
The most convenient location for the traveler, and the only place to get a kringle with a tank of diesel at 4 in the morning, is the Pietro Travel Plaza in Sturtevant, Wisconsin. The bakery counter here offers a broad selection of O&H Bakery goods, including over a dozen different varieties of kringle. If you arrive after the bakery counter closes, kringles are still available in the Travel Store, but you have to get them with dangerously caffeinated Travel Plaza Coffee.
An O&H kringle is a very eggy, rich pastry that flakes like a croissant. The Apple Kringle contains a pie-like filling of local apples. The cherry version is even better, made with tart cherries from Door County (that peninsula that juts out from Green Bay into Lake Michigan). The tartness helps to counterbalance all the butter and sugar. It makes us think of a country-stand’s cherry pie, but interpreted by seasoned Danish bakers.
The Viking Toast Kringle is a slight upcharge because it is coated with cream cheese frosting. But it’s worth it for a three-foot tube of cinnamon-laced Danish baking perfection: a mashup between a cinnamon roll and a kringle. This is a nice variation if you take the Olesen family’s advice and relax with your kringle and a cup of coffee.
O&H ships kringle all over the country, but with distance, the cost climbs and the freshness drops. Getting one from an O&H Bakery stand is a rite of passage for Great Lakes tourists as much as tolls on I-94.
Sunday | 7am - 1pm |
Monday | 6am - 6pm |
Tuesday | 6am - 6pm |
Wednesday | 6am - 6pm |
Thursday | 6am - 6pm |
Friday | 6am - 6pm |
Saturday | 6am - 5pm |
Other Nearby Restaurants
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Milwaukee Brat House
Milwaukee, WisconsinThe Brat House is a sports bar across the street from Usinger’s Sausage factory, making it THE brat destination in Milwaukee.
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Jack Pandl’s Whitefish Bay Inn
Whitefish Bay, WisconsinPandl’s menu is large, including wonderful whitefish, walleye & steaks; the highlight is a baked German pancake. For dessert: schaum torte. A Milwaukee best!
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Kopp’s Custard
Glendale, WisconsinMilwaukee is a city of excellent custard, and Kopp’s is one of the top purveyors, offering a unique flavor every day. Precede it with a butter burger.
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Serb Hall
Milwaukee, WisconsinMilwaukee Wisconsin’s Serb Hall is the largest fish fry on earth: an eating stadium restaurant serving Friday-only cod or perch with all the trimmin’s.
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The Wurst Bar/Foltz Family Market
Milwaukee, WisconsinThe Wurst Bar is a gem of a butcher in the Milwaukee Public Market making excellent sausage to fill buns or to top brick-oven pizza.
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LeDuc’s Frozen Custard
Wales, WisconsinLeDuc’s is a good taste of Wisconsin favorites, including tasty burgers and silken custard. Sundaes are particularly recommended.